---
title: "Waterstones vs WHSmith: Which is searched more?"
description: "Which is more popular in search, Waterstones or WHSmith? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Bookstores set worldwide. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time."
canonical: "https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/waterstones-vs-whsmith"
publisher: "Brandwave"
---

# Waterstones vs WHSmith: Which is searched more?

Which is more popular in search, Waterstones or WHSmith? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the Bookstores set worldwide. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time.

## Key facts

- **Compared**: Waterstones and WHSmith
- **Competitive set**: Bookstores
- **Market**: Global
- **Month measured**: Aug 2026
- **Waterstones Share of Search**: 0.15%
- **WHSmith Share of Search**: 3.1%

## Which is more popular in search, Waterstones or WHSmith?

- In August 2026, WHSmith had more branded searches than Waterstones among bookstores worldwide. WHSmith was estimated to have 246K branded searches compared to Waterstones’ 12.1K, and held a 3.1% Share of Search versus Waterstones’ 0.15%.
- WHSmith was ahead of Waterstones in every measured month of the 11 months ending August 2026.
- Across the 11 months ending August 2026, Waterstones’ estimated Share of Search among bookstores worldwide moved from 0.26% to 0.15%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 18.1K to 12.1K.
- Across the 11 months ending August 2026, WHSmith’s estimated Share of Search among bookstores worldwide moved from 6.5% to 3.1%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 450K to 246K.

## How did search popularity change for bookstores worldwide in August 2026?

- In August 2026, WHSmith overtook Blackwell's to rank 2nd among bookstores worldwide, at 3.1%.
- Estimated monthly branded searches for Waterstones worldwide fell 33.1% over 11 measured months, from 18.1K to 12.1K in August 2026.

## Month by month

| Month | Waterstones estimated searches | Waterstones Share of Search | Waterstones rank | WHSmith estimated searches | WHSmith Share of Search | WHSmith rank |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Oct 2025 | 18.1K | 0.26% | 4 | 450K | 6.5% | 2 |
| Nov 2025 | 22.2K | 0.27% | 4 | 368K | 4.5% | 2 |
| Dec 2025 | 27.1K | 0.23% | 4 | 450K | 3.8% | 2 |
| Jan 2026 | 14.8K | 0.18% | 4 | 301K | 3.7% | 2 |
| Feb 2026 | 14.8K | 0.23% | 4 | 201K | 3.1% | 2 |
| Mar 2026 | 14.8K | 0.19% | 4 | 246K | 3.1% | 2 |
| Apr 2026 | 9.9K | 0.12% | 4 | 246K | 3.1% | 2 |
| May 2026 | 12.1K | 0.15% | 4 | 246K | 3.1% | 2 |
| Jun 2026 | 12.1K | 0.15% | 4 | 246K | 3.1% | 2 |
| Jul 2026 | 12.1K | 0.15% | 4 | 201K | 2.5% | 3 |
| Aug 2026 | 12.1K | 0.15% | 4 | 246K | 3.1% | 2 |
| Sep 2026 | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## How each brand is measured

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Waterstones’ and WHSmith’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading.

- **Waterstones**: Measured on the search term “waterstones books”.
- **WHSmith**: Measured on the search term “wh smith”.

- [Waterstones profile](/demand/global-en/brands/waterstones)
- [WHSmith profile](/demand/global-en/brands/whsmith)
- [All bookstores worldwide](/demand/global-en/categories/bookstores): The set both shares are measured inside, 6 brands.

## Methodology

- [How is branded search demand measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused.

## Frequently asked questions

### Which is more popular in search, Waterstones or WHSmith?

In August 2026, WHSmith had more branded searches than Waterstones among bookstores worldwide. WHSmith was estimated to have 246K branded searches compared to Waterstones’ 12.1K, and held a 3.1% Share of Search versus Waterstones’ 0.15%.

## Cite this page

Brandwave. "Waterstones vs WHSmith: Which is searched more?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/waterstones-vs-whsmith

This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/compare/waterstones-vs-whsmith. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.